Tag: Redhot

Cavaliers
The Cavs’ 12-game winning streak was snapped by the Pacers, but they made sure to get revenge the very next game. This 13-1 stretch has been something to behold, with Cleveland putting up an incredible 123 points per 100 possessions behind three 20-plus per game scorers in Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland and Evan Mobley. — 34-6
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Thunder
Yep, right back to winning. OKC is 3-0 since losing to the Cavs, and have an absurd plus-12.8 net rating through 39 games. For reference, the 73-win Warriors finished with a plus-10.6 net rating, so this is historic stuff from the Thunder. — 34-6
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Rockets
What a stretch for the Rockets, who beat the Grizzlies twice in five days and then destroyed the Nikola Jokic-less Nuggets for a fifth straight win to pull into a tie with Boston in the loss column for the NBA’s third-best record. Houston’s offense, which struggled mightily to begin the season, is now all the way up to ninth in the NBA. That’s partially due to a heater from Jalen Green, who’s averaged 33 points and four assists on 55/53/96 splits over the five-game winning streak. 3 27-12
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Celtics
The Celtics have scored fewer than 100 points three times this season — and they’ve all happened in the past 10 days. Shooting variance? Sure. But this is what critics point to when it comes to the 3-heavy Boston attack — off games mean zero offense, as indicated by their 107.8 points per 100 possessions over their last five games, 27th in the NBA over that span. 1 28-12
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Grizzlies
Memphis is 5-5 over its last 10 games and defense has been the culprit, allowing 116 points per 100 possessions during that span. Ja Morant has been excellent since his return, averaging 23 points and six assists in five games as the Grizzlies have gone plus-48 in his minutes. 1 26-15
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Knicks
The Knicks have dismissed it, but they’re 0-5 against the Cavs, Celtics, Thunder and Rockets this season, with an average margin of defeat of over 15 points in those games. Those also happen to be the only NBA teams with a better record than them, so they’re obviously doing a lot right, but it’s still an alarming stat when you’re likely going to have to beat at least a couple of those teams in a playoff series to win a title. 1 27-15
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Nuggets
You could feel the weight being lifted off of Jamal Murray’s shoulders during a vintage 45-point outburst, including 32 in the first half alone, in Tuesday’s win over Dallas. Afterward he said he was “in the zone,” and the Nuggets are going to need him to stay there if they’re going to make a run toward the top of the conference over the next couple of months. — 24-16
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Clippers
The 59-point margin in Wednesday’s victory over the Nets was great, but the real exciting part was that Kawhi Leonard had by far his best game of the season, putting up 23 points in 23 minutes on 8-for-11 shooting. He also made all seven of his free throws after taking just three total in his first three games — a sign that he may be getting more comfortable playing through contact as he continues to ramp up his activity. 2 22-17
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Bucks
That’s five wins in six games for the Bucks, who have ridden their two stars to the tune of nearly 53 points per game during that stretch. As usual, they’ve relied on knockdown shooters surrounding Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, with Milwaukee landing second in the NBA with a 39% mark from beyond the arc. After all the ups and downs, the Bucks are in fourth place in the Eastern Conference. 2 22-17
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Mavericks
One of the Mavericks’ best three-man combos this season is Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving and Dereck Lively II (plus-18 net rating in almost 200 minutes). Now they’re all injured. So it shouldn’t be much of a surprise that Dallas is 2-8 over their last 10. Irving played through a disc issue in Tuesday’s loss to Denver but did not look sharp, scoring 11 points in 30 minutes on 4-of-18 shooting. 1 22-19
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Magic
Paolo Banchero made his triumphant return from an oblique injury and looks no worse for wear, averaging 25 points, seven rebounds and four assists on 49/47/77 splits in his first three games since October (though turnovers have been a bit of an issue). Unfortunately the Magic need to get used to playing with a superstar again, as they’ve lost three of their last four. 3 23-19
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Lakers
Stout defense. Six players with at least 14 points. Knockdown 3-point shooting. Wednesday’s win over the Heat laid the blueprint for Lakers success, and it ended a rough three-game skid. The Lakers are 8-3 when Austin Reaves dishes out at least seven assists — a good sign considering he’s averaging nine over his last 10 games. — 21-17
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Timberwolves
The Wolves are 8-2 this season when Anthony Edwards scores 30 points or more, a figure that could lead to some more high-volume shooting nights from the prolific superstar. He’s only attempted 20 or more field goals in one of the team’s last four games (a 41-point effort in a win over the Wizards). — 21-19
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Pacers
Just when Indiana was starting to put it together, Tyrese Haliburton comes up with a hamstring injury — a scary sight given his history, even though it’s the other leg. Hopefully he won’t be out long, since he was at the top of his game with 21 points and nine assists per game on 50/40/88 splits over the Pacers’ recent 7-1 stretch. — 23-19
15

Kings
Well they finally lost, but the seven-game winning streak did wonders for the Kings’ postseason positioning. They’re now squarely in the jumble of teams in the West Play-In spots, exactly what they needed after the firing of Mike Brown. The difference has been the defense, which ranks in the top 10 over their last eight games. 4 20-20
16

Heat
Wouldn’t it be wild if Jimmy Butler just laced them up and took the floor for Friday’s game, the first after the conclusion of his seven-game suspension? While it doesn’t seem likely, Miami is going to need to figure out what to do with its disgruntled star moving forward, assuming they can’t (or aren’t ready to) find a suitable deal. 1 20-19
17

Warriors
Steph Curry clarified his comments about not wanting the Warriors to sacrifice the future with an all-in move, reiterating that he still believes his team can make some noise as currently constructed. Viewers may disagree after seeing the product on the floor over the last 25 games, in which Golden State has gone 8-17 (with three of the wins, interestingly, coming against the Timberwolves). 1 20-20
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Pistons
Best story in the NBA? Not many saw the Pistons — winners of nine of their last 11 — being two games over .500 at this juncture of the season, and Cade Cunningham is the primary reason. His All-Star case is virtually impenetrable at this point, with the power guard averaging 25 points, nine assists and seven rebounds on 38% 3-point shooting. 1 21-20
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Hawks
Hawks legends Keaton Wallace and Daeqwon Plowden helmed an improbable road victory over the Bulls on Wednesday without Trae Young, Jalen Johnson, Zaccharie Risacher and De’Andre Hunter for Atlanta’s third win in its last four games. Vit Krejci has been on a roll, averaging 13 points, 4.5 assists and four rebounds over the four-game stretch on 50% 3-point shooting. 1 21-19
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Spurs
Ever wonder what this team would look like if Victor Wembanyama had some shooting around him? The Spurs are 23rd in the NBA in 3-point accuracy, and percentage points away from being 28th. Only one player (Julian Champagnie) is shooting over 37% on reasonable volume. Moving forward, the priority of the Spurs front office will surely be getting some more marksmen around their generational talent. — 19-20
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Suns
The Suns finally look like they’re starting to put things together, winning three of their last four, and they added big man Nick Richards to fill in the gaping hole in the middle. In six games since being removed from the starting lineup, Bradley Beal is averaging 16 points and four assists on 51% shooting. — 20-20
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Bulls
One loss just gets worse than the last for the Bulls, who may have hit rock-bottom with a double-digit defeat — at home — to a skeleton Hawks crew missing Trae Young, Jalen Johnson and other key rotation pieces. The porous Chicago defense allowed 46 combined points to Keaton Wallace and Daeqwon Plowden. And no, I did not just make those names up to see if you were still reading. — 18-23
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76ers
Paul George is “bored” guarding centers and apparently the 76ers are bored of winning, as they’ve dropped four in a row to fall to a ghastly 15-24 on the season. You have to start wondering when they reach the point of no return, as the math isn’t exactly in their favor. On the plus side, George is starting to look like the player Philadelphia hoped they’d signed, averaging 25 points, eight rebounds and six assists on 47/46/100 shooting splits during the latest losing streak. — 15-24
24

Nets
Brooklyn has been throwing out some wild lineups recently, and it caught up to them in a big way with a *59-point* loss to the Clippers on Wednesday. When they have their guys it’s a different story, evidenced by the 18-point hurting they put on the Trail Blazers with Cam Johnson, Ben Simmons and D’Angelo Russell all in action. The Nets are 0-8 without Johnson this season. 1 14-27
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Trail Blazers
It’s been a rough year for Portland in terms of wins and losses, but nights like Tuesday — when Scoot Henderson dropped a career-high 39 points and, most notably, made eight of his 10 3-point attempts, make the suffering worth it. The second-year guard has averaged 14 points and five assists over his last 12 games on 43% 3-point shooting. 1 13-26
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Raptors
OK Raptors, we see you. Consecutive wins for the first time since early December is reason enough to celebrate, the latest being a thorough handling of the defending champion Celtics on Wednesday. Chris Boucher has gone from irrelevant to a spark plug off the bench, averaging 15 points and eight rebounds in just 21 minutes over his last four games. 2 10-31
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Pelicans
The Pels have ripped off three wins in four games, and the loss was by a single point to the Celtics. When he’s not getting suspended for missing team flights, Zion Williamson has been excellent in his return to the floor, averaging 20 points, seven rebounds and five assists in 27 minutes in his first three games since early November. 2 10-32
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Jazz
Utah’s starting lineup for Wednesday’s loss to the Hornets had an average age of 22, so they’re clearly embracing the youth movement. The elder statesman was 26-year-old forward Micah Potter, who has all of 42 NBA games under his belt. 2 10-29
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Hornets
Sure there were a couple of postponements thrown into the mix, but the Hornets have won two of their last three behind some stout defense and A LOT of shots from LaMelo Ball. The unbashful guard has averaged 14 3-point attempts over his last three games, making just 29% of them. But hey, he’s also dished out nine assists per game, so it’s not like he’s being a ball hog. 2 9-28
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Wizards
It’s not a good sign when you look at a box score and say, “Oh wow, the Wizards only lost by 14!” The margin against the Wolves looked great after consecutive losses of 33 and 41 to the Bulls and Thunder, respectively. Rough times in the nation’s capital. — 6-33